Rival Snow Cone Maker

At the first signs of summer we look forward to making icy cold snow cones and topping them with our favorite flavored syrups.

This is our Rival Snow Cone Maker. At first we were a little reluctant about buying a snow cone machine. We thought it wouldn't work right. We did a little research and finally decided upon this model.

We liked the space age design but we didn't care what it looked like, we just wanted to make sure it would shave the ice easily. This unit runs by electricity, which is great. We were not looking for any hand cranking model like those they sell to kids at Christmas.

This unit is easy to load. We just lift the top white lid and put the ice cubes inside. We close lid, and press down on it while the ice comes shooting out the blue slot on the side. It comes out pretty forcefully, so you need your bowl right there at the opening. It is also a noisy machine, but we expect that since we are crushing hard ice.

In less than a minute, we have a bowl full of shaved ice which we can scoop into our snow cone paper cups or plastic cups. Once our cups are full, we can pour our choice of snow cone syrup over the top. We can also control the size of the ice chunks. This way we can make fruity drinks and slushies, not just snow cones.

One drawback is sometimes the ice cubes get jammed while you are trying to shave the ice. This stalls the machine. You simply stop and move the ice around inside or try to unstick the stuck cube.

Both the snow cone cups and syrups are easily available at stores. The syrups come in different flavors. We have also ordered more exotic syrup flavors online. One thing to know about syrups is that once the bottles are opened, they need to be refrigerated. I wouldn't suggest you open a large variety of flavors at once or you will have quite a collection in your refrigerator (like we do!).

Another great thing is that the clean up on this snow cone maker is minimal. We are using ice, so there is nothing sticky to clean up. The syrups do not come in contact with this machine. The unit does come apart for easy cleaning though. That part can be a bit clumsy, but not a problem.

Our main concern was if this snow cone maker would shave ice properly. That job is done by the blade which is actually located in the blue slot on the side where the ice shoots out. When this blade gets dull, we can order replacements, so that makes us happy. This snow cone maker isn't something you want the kids to play with. We never leave this on our countertop either. The blade is very sharp and kids can stick their fingers into the side slot and get cut.

This little appliance has been so much fun to have. It is not one of those things where it is such a hassle to use, that we would rather not deal with it. I can tell you it's easy. When we pull out our Rival Snow Cone maker at family get togethers or barbecues, it puts a smile on everyone's face. What a nice cool summertime treat.